


The time to know you

by diet_affection



Series: Writings from tumblr [1]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: (TWO YEARS?? way too long?), Angst, Bonding, Family Bonding, Fix-It, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Grief, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Keith's father is dead, Mother-Son Relationship, Other, Season 6 Spoilers, Season six fix it, Space Whales, Space Wolf - Freeform, Spoilers, Time Loop, What I imagine went down during those two years, but here we are, i dont like the time skip, s6, season 6, time skip
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-20
Updated: 2018-06-20
Packaged: 2019-05-26 00:45:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,369
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14989088
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/diet_affection/pseuds/diet_affection
Summary: AKA my attempt at coming to terms with the season six time skip.





	The time to know you

 “So, uh …”

There was a second where the word _mom_ was written out in Keith’s mind. Then the same sharp, sorrowful pain that he always connected with it rushed through him, cutting him off.

“…Krolia. How long do you think we’ll be here?”

It might have been his imagination, but he thought he saw a flash of disappointment in her eyes. Her voice was calm, as always.

“I don’t know. Time is strange here; layered and fragmented. Our perception of it might twist.”

“What do you mean?”

Keith ducked underneath a low hanging branch. Krolia flicked it away with one hand as she followed.

“Our bodies may age slower or faster than our minds. Our memories might stretch out to reach for months, or overlap into a muddled recollection. I’ve met people who spent years in time rifts and came out a day older, and others who were gone for a week but returned old and gray.”

“That’s… worrying.”

“Yes. But we accepted our fate when we agreed to the mission.”

Of course. _The mission_. It was always about the mission, wasn’t it?

“I guess we did,” he muttered.

“And strange as it may be, I –“

Her posture stiffened and her eyebrows twitched, as if the softness of her next words were unfamiliar to her.  

“I look forward to spending that time with you.”

Keith exhaled slowly.

“Yeah. Me too, I guess.”

 

\---------------

 

They kept walking for days.

Sometimes Keith lost himself in the rustling vegetation and the melody of the chirping animals, and sank into the feeling of being back at Earth. But above them, the gentle scintillation of space was a constant reminder of where they were. The grass was red, and the flowers glowed. He was very far from home.

Though as weeks passed, he grew accustomed to the flickering lights rising from the violet bushes, and he felt himself settling, bit by bit. They’d built a shelter of branches and rope, and it felt strangely safe and familiar – despite the rain that would drip down through the roof and the smoke that gathered between the walls, and had him coughing while Krolia inhaled deeply through her nose with a deadpan expression. It wasn’t quite a home, but it was a place to feel safe in.

His shoulders lowered for the first time in months, and he begun taking the time to breathe in the crispness of the air.

 

\-------------

 

“She’s beautiful.”

Keith nodded, feeding the wolf another piece of meat from the creature he’d just slain.

“Yeah. I’ve never seen anything like her.”

“The biology here is unique. We should feel honored.”

The wolf’s eyes glittered and her head lowered, as if she understood. Tossing her another piece, he stood. Krolia cleared her throat.

“We’ll name her Yahka’haf.”

“Uh…”

Keith held back a chuckle, recalling the vision he’d seen of his own naming.

“How about… Twilight?”

“The dwindling of light? It is fitting.”

Nodding solemnly, Krolia knelt and touched her hand to the wolf’s snout.

“It is an honor to meet you, Twilight.”

The wolf nuzzled her hand before turning to trot ahead of them.

Keith smiled sadly, watching the graze of which the animal leapt over fallen trees and how her fur shone in the light. As a child he’d always wanted a dog; a friend and guardian in one. His father had promised him one when he turned twelve.

He never got one.

 

\--------------

 

Despite the beauty of the night sky arching above him, he couldn’t sleep. Memories projected onto the darkness like a canvas in his mind’s eye. They were close to his heart, but felt incredibly out of reach.

How long had it been now? Time truly was strange here.

It felt like weeks when he remembered the still fresh terror of their battles against the Galra, months when he saw how much Twilight had grown, but years when the thought of the paladins appeared in his mind, faces flickering, their laughter distorted by noise. It was strange, this distance – both in time and space. For the first time in his life, he missed being surrounded by people, even if they talked loudly and bickered and dragged him into group hugs.

He missed them.

During his months with the Marmora, he’d mainly felt relieved. A twisted kind of relief, perhaps; the kind that told him that he felt more comfortable with the numb pain of loneliness than the terror of trying to make friends and fail. It had terrified him, always had. It didn’t really make sense. He had truly loved the sense of comradeship he had felt with the paladins, he’d loved teasing Lance and practicing the sword with Allura, being explained confusing tech by Hunk and Pidge, or talking strategy with Shiro and Coran. He had loved it, but also been terrified at the thought of it ending in disaster. It always did with him.

The sick truth was, he’d rather leave and keep those moments as treasured memories, than stay and risk fucking up.

But now? He missed them, so much. The fear was still there, of course. But somehow, he felt like it was worth pushing through, if only to one day be a part of that horrible group hug again.

 

\--------------

 

“Good job, Twi!”

The wolf leapt out of the river with a large silvery fish thrashing between her teeth. Keith reached out his hand to grab the fish, but Twilight stared pointedly up at him with her yellow eyes. Crossing his arms, Keith huffed.

“Oh, well – you can keep it, I guess.”

Snorting out a breath through her nose, she shook her fur violently, sending a shower of cold water over him.

“Fine, fine! You earned it. I’m sorry. Jeez.”

With a flash, she teleported away to gnaw at the fish underneath a nearby tree. He gave her a half-smile as he wiped water from his face.

“I guess I’ll just have to earn my own.”

Unsheathing his blade, he leant forward to study the flittering movements of the fish.

“Is that a good idea? I can kill one with my claws,” Krolia’s voice sounded behind him. Keith shifted his grip on the blade. He could do this, right? She was watching, after all.

“I can hit it.”

“Are you sure?”

Grunting, he lifted his blade above his head and sent it hurtling towards the fish. It hit the water with a splash, wobbled to the side and sank down to the sand as the fish darted away.

Huh.

He had good aim, but he had underestimated the movement of the water. _A shame_ , he thought as he bent down to retrieve the blade and shake water off it.

Krolia stepped up beside him, eyeing the water with pursed lips.

“All hat, no cattle, huh?”

Keith almost tripped hearing those familiar words, and he stared at Krolia, a disbelieving laugh bubbling up his throat.

“… _What_? Did you just -  did you just use _Texan_ slang?”

Squaring her shoulders, Krolia looked almost proud of herself.

“I, uh, reckon I did.”

The laugh broke past his lips to tumble out, loud and clear and unfamiliar to him.

“Was it not correct?”

The pride on her face had slipped into solemn distress. Keith tried to contain his laughter.

“I mean, it _was_ – it’s just – “

He huffed, smiling still as he sheathed the blade.

“It’s funny.”

“…Is that good?”

She still looked like a soldier ready to accept the punishment for her failure. Keith’s eyes softened.

“Yeah. It is. And… it reminds me of home.”

They both had the same memory in their minds at that moment; of a man who would give you kind eyes and a warm smile as he drawled about the weather. The image hung in the air, unspoken and heavy. As they walked back towards the shed the silence stayed for a while, before Krolia’s voice sounded, strangely quiet.

“I saw… I saw him – In the visions – “

“Yeah, he died.”

Pain flashed in her yellow eyes and Keith felt a pang of regret.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t – I forgot that you – “

He sighed.

“I just … I used to hate how people would try to pry - never asking directly, but hinting and prodding. I despised the way they avoided the question, so I’d just answer them bluntly to get them off my back. _Yeah, my dad died. Yes, I’m an orphan now_.”

Krolia nodded.

“Honesty is good.”

“No, that’s not – Those people didn’t care. Not really. They were curious, or pitying, or they just wanted a sob story to whisper to their friends. But you … loved him. Right?”

His voice cracked faintly at the word _love_ , which rarely was something he said out loud. But it felt appropriate now.

“I did.”

 

The shelter appeared between the lilac trees, and they both smiled a little at the bright flash of the wolf as she teleported ahead, only to run back to greet them. Keith knelt to start a fire while Krolia tossed Twi some berries.

“He taught me a lot, you know,” she said, pausing.

The fire was taking hold, blackening the twisted sticks. Keith swallowed heavily. He wasn’t sure if he was ready for this talk.

Then something nudged its nose against his hand, and he looked down. Twilight was peering up at him, licking his palm gently with her betty-stained tongue. He took comfort in the wolf’s eyes, which were huge and round, dark but shimmering in the reflection of the fire. It felt like there was a calm power there, a quiet strength he needed. Thanking her silently and weaving his fingers into her thick fur, he met Krolia’s eyes.

 “How long did you know him?”, he asked.

“In Earth years? A little over one, I think. But Galra … we bond quickly. And we mate for life,” she smiled faintly at him, “-something you should be aware of.”

His eyes widened.

“…Oh. “

“Caleb – he was an incredibly open man. He accepted me and my customs without hesitation, never losing sight of his feelings.”

Remembering how his father had put a reassuring hand on his head and ruffled his bangs when Keith had shyly described the boy with cute dimples he liked, he felt warmth fill his chest.

“Yeah. He was nice like that.”

Opening up like this was scary. It made him feel vulnerable –  but it was the relieving vulnerability of a soldier taking his heavy armor off.

“He was good at seeing the best in everyone. Even me”, he said.

Krolia’s eyes darkened at that. She sighed, gaze drifting to the alien growth surrounding them.

“He really was. I think he had enough love for every creature on that planet. Even in that drought-filled desert he found life, and joy in seeing it flower.”

Her hands trembled a bit.

“I’m sure he would have loved seeing the wonders of this place.”

“He used to plant cactuses in the backyard,” Keith whispered.

“Tiny, flowering cactuses.”

Suddenly, he felt like crying.

“Keith…”

Her breathing seemed labored.

“I am so sorry. I had to leave, but I wish – I wish I could have done more.”

He shook his head, biting his lip to keep the sobs away. There was nothing he could do about the warm trails down his cheeks.

“No, I don’t blame you.”

“It’s okay if you do. As long as you never forget,” she was beside him now, carefully placing a hand over his, “- that I do love you.”

Keith cried then, but her hand never left him. It anchored him through his grief, and made him feel not alone within it.

 

\-------------

 

It was a few days later, as Keith was making dinner, that the word just slipped out of him like the most natural thing.

“Hey, mom, hand me the carrots over there.”

He held his hand out, before stiffening. His eyes trailed up to meet Krolia’s – no, his _mom’s_. They were filled with the weight of eighteen years’ worth of love.

“I can do that.”

“Thanks, um… mom,” he mumbled, ears red.

As they ate dinner, he paid attention to the light in her eyes every time he said that word. He decided to keep using it.

It belonged to him too, now.

 

\------------

 

One night, when the fire had died down and only the stars shone above them, Keith laid curled up on his woven blanket, Twi against his back. He was sinking into sleep when something brushed against his hair. Then a hand settled on his cheek, very carefully.

Keith’s breath caught in his chest, trapped in a cage of interwoven emotion. He tried to calm himself and stay still, terrified of scaring away the touch that they both sorely craved. It seemed to work, as Krolia relaxed her hand, letting the fingers curl out and settle against him. Then, hesitating so much it made his throat tighten, she began stroking his cheek.

The movements were slow, as she seemed to be taking care to not scratch him with her clawed nails. Keith leant cautiously into the touch. And then the side of his face was being cupped by her large hand, a nail combing through his bangs to lift them out of his eyes. Her skin was warm against his, and it made him tremble with emotion.

Having gained some confidence that he wouldn’t scream and bolt, Krolia began moving her fingers in slow circles, exploring his features thoughtfully. Keith had trouble keeping his face calm. When her hand moved to thread into his hair, he used the opportunity to gently roll over, releasing a shuddering breath. Krolia hesitated, but soon continued the soothing strokes through his hair.

Keith was awash in a feeling of closeness; a familiar intimacy that he rarely experienced. It required such a strong trust, for him at least, a complete faith that he was not at risk in this person’s arms. That he was safe.

He heard his mother humming softly to herself, and allowed his lips to curl into an easy smile which he hid in his blanket. This was … nice. And so much more.

His chest ached, but it was a good hurt. A drop of something bittersweet, where the bitterness was the sharp taste of his lonely childhood, and the sweetness the promise of now.

**Author's Note:**

> My tumblr: [keith-in-shibari (nsfw)](https://keith-in-shibari.tumblr.com/)
> 
> Thanks for reading!


End file.
